On Sunday, an Italian media house reported that several Nigerians were among the 31 African migrants who drowned in a bid to cross over to Italy off the coast of Libya.

According to the report, 31 migrants which include 9 women all drowned off the coast of Libya during an attempted crossing to Italy according to survivors who managed to complete the journey.

A dinghy carrying 53 migrants capsized on Friday evening, and witnesses said 31 of those who had been thrown off it drowned in the accident.

The twenty-two survivors, who come from Nigeria, Gambia, Benin and Senegal, said the dinghy had capsized after three days at sea. They were rescued by a passing merchant ship and taken to Lampedusa island, the reports said.

As the number of boat immigrants attempting the crossing soars in the good weather, rescuers saved another 450 people trying to reach Italy on Friday and Saturday, increasing tensions at the already crowded refugee centre on the island.

Another 92 migrants — including 16 women — were rescued Sunday morning in the Strait of Sicily after their boat got into difficulty.

Since 1999, more than 200,000 people have arrived on Lampedusa — which is closer to North Africa than Italy — making it, along with the Greece-Turkey border, one of the biggest gateways for undocumented migrants and refugees into the European Union.

In nearby Malta, 112 migrants were saved from their drifting dinghy overnight Saturday in a 13-hour operation during which eight of those rescued were airlifted to hospital by helicopter for urgent medical attention.

That group — which included 20 women and four children — was suffering from exhaustion, dehydration and sun stroke, a Maltese army spokesman told AFP.

The latest arrivals bring the number of migrants to land on Malta in July to 880 — an all-time record for a month — while 1,200 people in total have landed on the island so far this year. — AFP

This is sad! Can you imagine what some Africans go through daily in order to reach their ‘promise land’.

I pity non of them even a friend of mine who live closed to my house in libya was dead too. We all know the risk when crossing the mediterenian sea to Italy is life or dead and majority are always dieing and we are here in libya noboy pretence not to knw what is happening everyday but yet some still chose to go and die. Even with this one happenning now some are preparing to take off today 29 july 2013 and when u try to advice them u become thier enemy and they even tell u that u re jealos of them becoz u dont have transport to italy after going the next thing u here is out of 100 maybe 10 or 20 made it were are the rest? The funniest part of it is nobody knws thier pple back home to call and tell them. The poor parents just sit and wait for thier son who left for italy for like 5 or 10 yrs ago hoping one day he or she will call. Sorry anyway may the souls Rest in peace

Nothing like bad leadership in this criminal quick resort for easy money making lazy folks. Why trying to reap from where they sowed not? Your life is what you make yourself. Be content with what you are, where you are and ofcourse how you are made. The love of money is the root of all evil. The shortest cut to get rich is not without the highest risk of loosing one’s life. Life has no alternaive. ‘Give us this day our daily bread’, is a prayer of creative mind. May their souls rest in peace.